Ep 100: Community as Strategy: Your Guide to Growth with Tyler Finn

In the 100th episode of The Abstract, the mic flips as SpotDraft’s Chief of Staff, Nakta Alaghebandan, interviews our podcast’s usual host and creator, Tyler Finn.  

From his start in public policy to shaping one of the most influential legal communities at SpotDraft, Tyler shares the pivotal career moments, risky leaps, and trust-building lessons that defined his path. He reflects on navigating early career detours, becoming a privacy leader despite skepticism, and building trust from scratch with executive stakeholders and customers.  

The conversation dives deep into community-building philosophy, the value of calculated risk, and how Tyler sees “increasing your surface area” as the most underutilized career growth strategy. You'll also hear how the podcast came to life, what he’s learned after 100 episodes, and his advice for creating lasting impact — with humility, humour, and heart.  

Read detailed summary:  https://www.spotdraft.com/podcast/episode-100  

Topics
Introduction: 0:00
Tyler’s early pivot from public policy to legal tech: 3:15
Choosing privacy despite warnings against it: 5:40
Building trust after entering a low-trust role: 8:33
Becoming the go-to for high-anxiety customer: 12:04
Why cross-functional thinking matters in legal leadership: 15:52
Sitting in the grey: layoffs, uncertainty, and consulting: 19:03
Taking calculated risks and trusting your gut: 22:51
From outsider to community leader at TechGC: 25:20
What real community building looks like: 29:28  
How to design a community where people actually open up: 30:55
Building trust and reputation intentionally: 31:25
How SpotDraft went from a consulting client to employer: 36:26
Community as a future-facing marketing strategy: 40:18
How Tyler now evaluates executive teams and companies: 43:22
Why the CEO and executive team matter more than you think: 46:33
What great executive teams do to support internal community: 47:42
Why Tyler launched The Abstract and his goals for it: 50:12
Personal lessons from 100 episodes: 56:04
“Increasing your surface area” and embracing uncertainty: 1:01:56
Favourite part of the day: 1:05:12
Professional pet peeve: 1:06:11
Book recommendations: 1:07:09
Advice to younger self: 1:11:21   

Connect with us:
Tyler Finn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/tylerhfinn
Nakta Alaghebandan - https://www.linkedin.com/in/nakta/
SpotDraft - https://www.linkedin.com/company/spotdraft  

SpotDraft is a leading contract lifecycle management platform that solves your end-to-end contract management issues.   Visit https://www.spotdraft.com to learn more.